A synopsis of the sermon delivered by the Rev. David L. Hicks at St. Paul’s Reformed Episcopal Church on Sunday, November 2, 2003, Trinity XX. Please read St. Matthew 22:1-14.

The parable in today’s Gospel lesson starts out like many of the parables of Jesus – “The kingdom of God is like…” Whenever a person attempts to describe something unfamiliar to someone else, a comparison is made between what is known and what is unknown. Jesus is aware that we do not know anything about the kingdom of God on our own. It is beyond our realm of experience. The kingdom of God must be revealed to those who wish to understand it, and its truths can be communicated by comparing it to things within the world of our experience.

In this particular parable, Jesus compares a king’s invitation to his son’s wedding feast to the invitation God extends to his people that they might participate in the kingdom of God. It is absurd to think that subjects of a king would spurn such an invitation, yet God’s people had rejected his invitation over and over again. They are represented in the parable by those who first received the king’s invitation. The story of the Old Testament is riddled with example after example of instances in which Israel rejects God’s message of salvation and fellowship delivered through his prophets. Their rejection of the invitation results in God’s rejection of them. The second group, those from the highways, represents those people outside of official Judaism, including the Gentiles. Although this group accepts the invitation to feast, there are some who are not above showing disrespect to the king. One man in particular arrives at the feast without the proper wedding attire. When asked why he failed to wear a wedding garment, the man is speechless, signifying that he has no legitimate excuse for his impropriety. He wants to enjoy the feast without submitting to the master of the feast. So it is with many who hear God’s invitation today – they want the benefits of the kingdom of God without giving obedience to the king of the kingdom.

What is at stake for all those who hear the parable is the rule of God in their lives. As the people of God, we can lose sight of the obedience and respect that are required from us in our fellowship with God. We may be so concerned about the benefits of the invitation that we fail to acknowledge the one who has extended the invitation. Jesus says in the Gospel of Luke, “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord’ and not do the things I say?” May the Lord who grants us his invitation, grant us the grace not only to call him Lord, but to obey him Lord.
Amen.